


Silver Eyes

by CanineR7A7



Category: Five Nights at Freddy's
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Charlie needs a hug, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-04
Updated: 2018-03-07
Packaged: 2019-03-26 16:28:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 23
Words: 9,009
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13861629
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CanineR7A7/pseuds/CanineR7A7
Summary: My version of the Silver Eyes novel. What if Charlie hadn't been friends with the others before the events of the book? Also, I have a habit of making my favourite characters suffer so... if that's not your thing...bye.





	1. Chapter 1

Charlie kept a tight grip on the steering wheel as she drove into town, everyone knew what was happening that day – there was going to be a ceremony, or whatever they were calling it, for the kid who was killed in her father’s restaurant – it’d been a few years and even though her father died a while back, Charlie still worried that people would recognise her as Henry’s daughter and that they would blame her for what happened – it was an irrational fear, but it’s not like she had anyone who tried to convince her otherwise. She kept driving long after passing the school, not noticing that she had unconsciously driven to the car park outside the empty shell of the unfinished supermarket that buried her father’s work. Every part of her mind screamed at her to leave, but she found herself unlocking the car door and climbing out.

“May as well.” She sighed, walking to the trunk of her car and pulling out her flashlight, she gazed at the grey structure for a few moments before walking towards it, she halted when two other cars pulled up, she watched as five people climbed out of them.

“Who are you?” The tall boy with black hair called out to her, she could tell he was surprised, she honestly didn’t blame him.

“Who are you?” She called back, not entirely trusting them.

“Uh, we asked first.” The brown-haired girl shouted back.

“I don’t know you people, for all I know you people are murderers.” She saw something similar to sympathy pass over the boy’s features.

“I’m John; this is Jessica, Carlton, Jason, and Marla.” He gestured to each of them as he said their names.

“Charlie.” She responded, she still didn’t trust these people.

“If you don’t mind me asking, what are you doing here?” John asked hesitantly.

“Sightseeing.” She responded vaguely, she didn’t want to admit to trespassing.

“Funny, we were here for the same reason, mind joining us?” She shrugged in agreement, telling herself it was just so she could keep an eye on them. Charlie wasted no time in walking towards the alleyway where the back entrance could be found, she listened carefully to the footsteps behind her, making sure there was no-one following them.

“So, why are you guys here?” She noticed them falter, seemingly trying to figure out what to answer with.

“We came back for the ceremony; the kid who died was our friend.” Charlie felt guilt stirring in her chest, she had a few friends growing up but she lost contact with all of them after her father died.

“And yourself?” The girl who had been introduced as Marla asked, Charlie took a breath, preparing for an onslaught of hatred at her answer.

“My father owned the business.” The stunned silence didn’t surprise her, but the sudden cheer did, Jessica practically tackled Charlie’s shoulders.

“Why didn’t you say so sooner?” Charlie just looked at the girl for a few moments, waiting for the answer to come to her.

“Oh, right.” She moved back with a nervous chuckle. Charlie carried on walking until she reached a shelving unit, she attempted to move it but it must’ve rusted to the floor.

“Need some help?” She watched as John grabbed the other side of it and the two grunted as they moved it out of the way, uncovering a rusted door, everyone leaned against the doors, forcing them open. Charlie watched as the others ran into the building.

“Home sweet home.” She murmured bitterly before following them in.


	2. Chapter 2

Charlie moved the flashlight across the walls and over the tables, the place was dusty and it was clear that the pictures had started to rot; she could feel a memory pulling at the back of her head, a smaller diner and a young boy. She felt tears building and closed her eyes, she wouldn’t cry, not now.

“Hey, are you okay?” John asked her, Charlie nodded, not quite trusting her voice.

“Hey Charlie!” She heard Jessica yell; she walked over to the girl and watched as she pointed to the animatronics on the stage.

“Do you know how to start them?” Charlie suddenly regretted saying that she was Henry’s daughter, no, she wouldn’t think about that here. She shone her flashlight along the wall until it came to rest on a red panel; she pried it open and stepped inside.

“A bit cramped in here.” Charlie started; she hadn’t expected Jessica to follow her. She shrugged it off and ran the light over the controls and pressed a few buttons experimentally, she looked at the monitors when she heard Jessica’s cheer. Bonnie and Chica had started to move, it was nothing like the dances they were programmed to do while the diner was open, but it was something.

“Why isn’t Freddy moving?” Jessica leaned over her shoulder, Charlie felt herself freeze – she wasn’t used to people being that close, at least, not to her.

“One of the other buttons must do something, or there might be another set of controls.” She knew about the other panel but she wasn’t going to go to the room where it was located. She pressed a few more buttons, not surprised when Freddy did nothing.

“Where would another panel be?” Charlie cursed herself for mentioning that, she didn’t want to go in that room, she was fine with the animatronics on the main stage, but the other one had always scared her.

“Don’t know.” She responded simply, groaning when she saw the look on Jessica’s face.

“But your-“ Charlie cut her off.

“My dad’s dead, okay.” She exclaimed, immediately regretting it when a look of pity entered Jessica’s eyes.

“I’m going, didn’t want to stay for long anyway.” Charlie walked off, not waiting for Jessica’s reply, she didn’t realise that everyone else had heard her.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just realized I forgot about Lamar, just pretend he was there the entire time.

Charlie got in her car and leaned back in her seat, she closed her eyes, she wouldn’t let herself cry, that could wait until she was home. She started when she heard someone tap the window, she rolled it down and met John’s eyes, she hoped the tears building weren’t obvious.

“Me and my friends are heading to a restaurant in town, we were wondering if you wanted to come with us.” She nodded, she just wanted to go home and sleep, but she didn’t want to be alone just yet. She followed their cars to the restaurant and refused to meet any of their eyes. She was thankful that the group waited for the food to arrive before they started speaking.

“That was actually fun.” Carlton stated.

“Yeah, I mean, I had no idea it was still there.” Marla added.

“I still can’t believe we met the owner’s kid.” Lamar laughed, Charlie sighed inaudibly; she hated it when people talked about her as if she wasn’t there.

“Yeah, and outside Freddy’s too.” Carlton smiled at the coincidence, Charlie smiled, as much as she hated to admit it; the coincidence was kind-of funny.

“So what made you come back to town?” John turned to her, she raised an eyebrow at that, how did he know she didn’t live here?

“Just a guess.” He shrugged at her expression, she sighed.

“I just, wanted to see it, one more time.” She saw the concern in John’s eyes, she didn’t blame him, she hadn’t worded that very well.

“What do you mean?” Jessica asked, clearly the rest of them shared John’s concern.

“People’ll get rid of it eventually and I’ll be back on the road in a week or two.” She shrugged, not missing the relief that passed over their faces, she didn’t understand why they were relieved, they didn’t even know her.

“Where do you live?” Jessica asked, Charlie raised an eyebrow.

“I’m being serious; I want to visit you sometime.” Charlie’s eyes widened, she’d known them for less than a day and they wanted to visit her in the future. Charlie sighed, she knew they wouldn’t take her answer well.

“I don’t exactly live anywhere.” She saw the shock on their features and carried on.

“I’ve been in and out of motels for a while now, maybe a hotel if I find a town to stay at.” She watched it sink in.

“How do you afford that?” She laughed internally.

“I generally stay in the town for a while, there’s usually a coffee shop or a garage that I can do some work in, I’ll stay until I have enough to cover petrol, food and the motels.” She saw something similar to excitement pass over Jessica’s face.

“What places have you been to?” The girl leaned forward.

“A few, I’ve stopped keeping track.” The girl sighed and Charlie had to bite back a chuckle.

“Your family’s okay with that?” Charlie felt emptiness in her heart; she was hoping they wouldn’t ask about her family. She couldn’t prevent her scoff.

“What family?” She hated the pity in their eyes, she placed the money for her food on the table and left.


	4. Chapter 4

Charlie closed the hotel room’s door behind her, her old house wasn’t far from here but she wasn’t ready to return to it yet. She closed her eyes and leaned back against the wood, she would scream if it didn’t mean annoying her neighbours – going back to Freddy’s was a mistake, coming back to this town was a mistake. She sighed and moved over to her case, pulling out a t-shirt and some sweatpants, she changed into them and climbed into bed, the events of the day had worn her out. That night she dreamt of blood, screaming and groaning metal.

_Next morning:_

Charlie leaned against the hotel wall, hands clutched around a paper coffee cup, she didn’t get much sleep at all – she wanted to leave, to get back on the road and leave Freddy’s far behind, but she couldn’t, she didn’t have enough money for a few weeks’ worth of fuel and food – she was startled from her thoughts when she heard someone next to her.

“Didn’t get much sleep?” John asked her, she just shook her head and took a sip of her coffee that had long since gone cold.

“Hey, I’m sorry if we upset you yesterday.” She watched as he rubbed the back of his neck, she just sighed.

“It’s fine, just, bad memories.” She was thankful that he didn’t question her; she wouldn’t be able to handle another trip down memory lane.

“How long are you planning on staying?” She mentally counted the money she had left over.

“A few weeks.” The two stood in silence after that, Charlie finished her coffee but she didn’t feel awake.

“Well that was a waste.” She stated as she chucked the empty cup in the nearby trashcan, she gained a small smile when she heard him laugh.

“Not surprising, coffee doesn’t replace a full night of missed sleep.” He smiled.

“Shame, oh well, at least I don’t have work today.” She saw confusion take over his features for a few seconds before he remembered the conversation yesterday.

“Hey, we’re planning on visiting Carlton today, want to come with us?” She was surprised at that; she honestly didn’t think they’d want to hang out with her more. Her shock must’ve shown on her face.

“We all think you’re pretty cool, besides, something tells me you don’t socialise that much.” He had her there; she nodded in agreement and saw a soft smile drift onto his features.

“I’ll go and get the others.” He nodded to the building. A few minutes later she was in a car with Jessica and John, she didn’t know why they offered her a ride, she had her own car after all, but she wasn’t questioning it. When they pulled up, Carlton was already waiting for them.

“Hey guys, Charlie.” She was still surprised when one of them smiled at her, she still believed they should hate her; their friend was killed at her father’s diner after all. She watched as the front door opened and a man she remembered all-too-well walked out.

“You’ve all grown up.” He laughed, his eyes lingering on each of them but none as long as Charlie.

“Don’t think I’ve seen you before, what’s your name?” Charlie swallowed.

“Charlie, sir.” She saw recognition flash in his eyes.

“Charlotte Mayfield?” She nodded and watched a softness enter his expression.

“I’m sorry about your loss.” She forced herself not to cry, she’d almost forgot about the days following her father’s death, she didn’t know what was going on at the time but she learned later on that the police had investigated Henry’s death, a memory flashed briefly of metal and blood. It must’ve shown on her face because the next thing she felt was the man’s hand on her shoulder.

“If you need anything, let me know.” She just nodded, not quite trusting her voice.


	5. Chapter 5

The group were sat in Carlton’s room, they were catching up on what they had been doing since the last time they met, Charlie was sat in one of the corners of the room, she still felt like an outsider, no matter how many times they tried to include her. Carlton’s voice shook her from her thoughts.

“Hey guys, check this out.” He passed his friends an old newspaper, Charlie moved closer, her curiosity taking over.

“Disappearance at local diner.” Charlie felt herself freeze, she didn’t listen to the rest, she already knew what it was about, she had the same clipping in her jacket pocket.

“But that doesn’t make any sense, why did Freddy’s stay open if someone disappeared?” Jessica exclaimed.

“It’s not Freddy’s.” The group turned to face Charlie, she hadn’t realised she’d spoken out loud.

“What?” Marla’s voice was practically a whisper.

“There was another diner, before Freddy’s.” Charlie hated how weak her voice sounded.

“Your father’s?” John asked hesitantly, Charlie just nodded.

“Can we go?” Jason asked excitedly.

“It’s Charlie’s decision.” Marla scolded gently – Charlie didn’t want to go there, there were some memories she never wanted to disturb again, that diner was one of them.

“We don’t have to go if you don’t want to.” John reassured her, he was curious, she could tell, but she was thankful that none of them were forcing her.

“Sure.” She watched the excitement settle on their faces.

“Really?” Jessica asked, her eyes shining.

“Yeah, it’s probably time I face my memories there anyway.” She shrugged, trying to look bored with the idea, but it was clear the others had seen through her act.


	6. Chapter 6

They pulled up at the old diner, Charlie slowly got out of her car, she wasn’t too happy about being back but she had to do this, the others waited for her by the entrance, the faded sign reading _Fredbear’s Family Diner._

“This place looks nice.” Lamar stated, gazing at the faded paint job – Charlie said nothing; she merely pushed the doors open, the hinges groaning from lack of use.

“Have a look around if you want, I’m heading to the office.” She didn’t wait for any of them to reply and walked to the black door near the stage, she pushed it open, not minding the screech of the hinges, the room was empty apart from an old desk and a photo. She must’ve been staring at the photo for a while because when she looked up, the others had gathered in the room.

“What’s that?” Lamar nodded to the frame, she handed them the photo and crossed her arms loosely.

“Is that you?” Jessica asked, pointing to the little girl, Charlie just nodded.

“Who’s the boy next to you?” She felt a lump in her throat, if there was a time to talk about her past, it was now.

“My brother.” She didn’t look at their faces.

“You have a brother?” She stopped herself from face-palming.

“I _had_ a brother.” She saw realisation pass over their faces.

“Your brother was the one in the paper.” It was a statement but she found herself nodding, she sat on the desk.

“Can I tell you what happened to my family?” She saw shock pass over their features, truthfully, she didn’t believe she’d offered that either.

“Are you sure?” John stepped forward.

“I’ve kept it quiet for too long.” She watched him nod and took a few moments to arrange her thoughts.

“I guess I’ll start from the disappearance.” She wiped her hands on her jeans.

“Me and Sammy – my brother – we used to hide in the spare parts room, I can’t really remember why, we just did, Mom and Dad were fine with it because we knew not to mess with anything.” She took a breath.

“My dad had designed these animatronics, they could be used as robots but they had a mechanism that pinned the mechanical parts to the sides of the suits so that people could use them.” She almost smiled at the amazement on their faces.

“Anyway, one day me and my brother were hiding in the room and one of the animatronics walked in, it just stared at us for a few moments, then the next thing I know, it’s walking out the room, my brother under its arm.” She heard them gasp and forced herself not to cry.

“The police searched for him for months, his body was never found, but I know he’s dead.” She felt the desk dip slightly and turned to see that John had sat next to her; she swallowed and forced herself to carry on.

“The diner was closed and my parents started arguing.” She looked up and saw a sympathetic expression take over Marla’s face.

“A few weeks before we moved to Hurricane, mom walked out on us.” She felt John rubbing her arm, no-one had comforted her before.

“Dad changed, he was never good at socialising in the first place but it got worse when mom left. He started working on the animatronics for Freddy’s; every time I spoke to him it was like he wasn’t there.” She took another breath.

“I know he loved me, he just, forgot how to show it.” She dropped her gaze, knowing she’d fall apart if she kept looking at them.

“You all know what happened to Freddy’s, but you probably don’t know what happened after that.” She took another breath, trying to put off the rest.

“Dad was blamed for what happened, at first. When the investigation ended, he got worse.” She felt John’s hand move to her back.

“I walked home from school one day, dad was late and it was starting to get dark.” She heard Jessica breathe, she’d probably guessed what happened, but she didn’t know how bad it was.

“Like I said, my dad built animatronics that could be used as normal suits, but you had to be careful with them or the locks could snap out of place.” She saw the horrified expressions on their faces and knew what they were picturing.

“Dad was wearing one of the suits, one I hadn’t seen before, I thought he was just playing around. I walked up to him and he must’ve tripped the locks, he was just sat there over a pool of his own blood.” She could feel tears streaming down her cheeks, she felt a tug on her shoulder, the next thing she knew, her face was buried in John’s chest and she couldn’t hold back the sobs.

“What happened after that?” Marla asked gently, placing a hand on Charlie’s shoulder.

“The police couldn’t find my mom so I moved in with my aunt, but she was grieving, for years she’d talk to me and it was as if she couldn’t see me. Left as soon as I had my license.” She felt a hand brushing through her hair, it wasn’t something she was used to but she didn’t try to move away.

“What about your friends?” Charlie scoffed

“What friends?” She felt the hand stop, the next thing she knew, she was being hugged from all sides.

“Well, you have us now.” Jessica stated cheerfully, Charlie had never felt so wanted her entire life.


	7. Chapter 7

Charlie and the others walked out of the building, talking about her family had drained her and she was currently stood with her head resting on John’s shoulder, she was thankful that the others hadn’t tried to tease them.

“What should we do now?” Carlton asked, Charlie could tell the others didn’t want to go back to the hotel yet and she didn’t think Clay would let them all stay the night.

“We can go to mine.” She murmured, too tired to speak any louder.

“I thought you didn’t live anywhere.” Jessica turned questioning eyes in Charlie’s direction.

“I don’t, when dad died, the house wasn’t put up for sale because of the police investigation, even after then no-one wanted it, since it’s not directly part of town it was left alone.” She watched as the others thought about her offer; she felt someone tap her arm and looked at John.

“Are you sure?” She just nodded, if she didn’t go now, she likely never would. Charlie looked at the others and realised they were already heading to the cars, she felt John guiding her to her own.

“I’ll drive.” He murmured before opening the passenger door for her, she slid in and listed off the directions that she’d burned into her skull. When they got out of the cars, the others stopped and gazed up at the building, she heard Carlton whistle.

“And I thought my house was big.” This caused a few chuckles; Charlie paid little attention to the comment and simply walked up to the front door, slotting the key from round her neck into the lock. The first thing they could smell was must.

“You weren’t kidding were you?” Jessica asked jokingly, Charlie rolled her eyes and walked inside, her eyes immediately locking on a large stain on the wooden boards.

“Jeez.” One of them breathed, she felt someone lace their fingers loosely with hers, some else doing the same on her other side.

“I’m so sorry Charlie.” She heard John murmur; she closed her eyes trying to get rid of the image of her father’s corpse.

“It’s fine, we didn’t even know each other back then, you couldn’t’ve known.” The group spent some time around the house before driving back to the hotel. Charlie was about to head to her room when she felt Jessica and Marla link their arms with hers.

“You’re staying with us tonight.” Jessica stated cheerfully, she was about to protest, but Marla cut her off.

“We don’t want you alone tonight, you’ve been alone for too long.” She didn’t have the strength to argue and simply let herself be lead to their room.


	8. Chapter 8

Charlie woke up that morning to a hand stroking her hair, she didn’t need to look in a mirror to know there were tear tracks staining her cheeks, she saw Jessica walk into view with a steaming mug.

“She’s awake.” That was the quietest Charlie had ever heard her voice, she felt someone moving her into a sitting position – she usually hated being treated like this but she couldn’t bring herself to resist.

“How are you feeling?” Marla asked, concern leaking into her voice.

“Tired.” She responded truthfully, she only got a few hours’ worth of sleep per week, and returning to Hurricane had only made it worse.

“You went through a lot yesterday, it’s not surprising.” She felt an arm wrap around her shoulders.

“Do you want to go back to sleep?” Charlie just shook her head; the memories were too vivid in her sleep.

“Here.” Jessica handed her the mug, Charlie drank from it in silence, she wasn’t used to other people caring about her – sure, her previous employers had, but she never stayed in the towns long enough to get to know them.

“We’re all heading back to our homes soon.” Charlie looked up at Marla and waited for her to continue.

“We were planning on going to Freddy’s again, you know, just one more time before we move on with our lives.” Charlie could understand that, it was the first thing she had done when she arrived after all.

“We were wondering if you wanted to come with us?” She wasn’t entirely surprised that they’d asked, she’d quickly got used to them asking her to do stuff with them; clearly she’d took too long to reply.

“You don’t have to come with us if you don’t want to.” She could tell Jessica was hopeful and somehow she knew the others were the same, she merely nodded and smiled slightly at the quiet cheer.


	9. Chapter 9

The group pulled up outside the diner, Charlie didn’t miss the concerned glances they sent her way, she just shrugged them off, she wouldn’t let events that happened ten years ago affect her more than they already had. They started the walk to the alleyway but froze when they saw a flashlight.

“Do you think they know?” Jessica whisper-yelled in panic, Charlie scoffed; they would’ve known if someone had found out.

“Let’s just wait; they might not even come this way.” The others relaxed at Lamar’s suggestion but Charlie didn’t, it was wishful thinking, and that only ever led to disaster in her experience. She was proven right when the light was pointed at them.

“Who are you?” A voice called out to them, Charlie contemplated running, but it probably wouldn’t do them much good, she watched as John stepped forward.

“I’m John; this is Charlie, Jessica, Marla, Lamar, Carlton and Jason.” Charlie had a brief flashback to the day they met.

“Name’s Dave Miller.” The man replied, sounding a lot friendlier than he did before but something didn’t feel right in Charlie’s mind, it almost sounded as if he wasn’t used to his name – she shrugged it off, telling herself she was just paranoid.

“What are you doing out here?” Carlton asked him, Charlie rolled her eyes – they weren’t exactly in a position to be asking questions.

“None of your business kid, now why don’t you tell me why you lot is here?” Dave stepped out of the shadows, his expression almost seemed humorous.

“Just looking around.” Lamar replied vaguely, but Dave’s attention wasn’t on him, it was on Charlie.

“You look familiar.” The others turned to face her while Charlie tried to remember if she had seen him before.

“You must be thinking of someone else.” She responded simply, she ignored the brief spark of fear she felt when her eyes met his – there was something predatory about them, making her feel as if he knew something she didn’t – he broke the contact and his voice took on a less menacing tone.

“Probably just one of those faces.” He nodded to himself, Charlie didn’t feel entirely convinced.

“I know you guys want to go in there.” He nodded to the building, the group freezing at his admission.

“Now, I could turn you in for trespassing.” Charlie felt panic sink in, she wasn’t worried about herself, it’s not like she had any family to deal with but her new friends did.

“But I won’t, under one condition.” He seemed to be enjoying dragging this out, but Charlie wished that he would just hurry up.

“You let me come with you.” The group let out a joint sigh of relief – Charlie wanted to know why he wanted to come with them but she chose not to question it, simply walking towards the entrance, knowing that the others (Dave included) were following her. She and John moved the shelving unit and waited for the others to walk in.


	10. Chapter 10

Charlie found herself keeping an eye on Dave for the entire time they were there, she didn’t trust him, and she could tell the others were weary. Dave didn’t seem to know she was watching him, or if he did, he didn’t show it.

“Hey Charlie!” She heard Carlton yell, slightly panicked, she looked over to him, not entirely taking her attention from Dave.

“Are the animatronics supposed to be doing that?” She looked over at the stage and her eyes widened at what she saw: the three of them were jittering where they stood and appeared to be trying to pull their feet from the bolts attaching them to the stage. Sparks flew from one of the old ceiling-lights and everything went dark, Charlie heard the others screaming and went to turn on her flashlight. Suddenly, she felt it being knocked from her hand while something covered her mouth, she felt herself losing consciousness, the last thing she felt was her body falling to the floor and something colliding with her head.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter and the next one will be focused on the group.

The group ran from the building and gathered in the car park to catch their breaths, John looked up and felt dread sink in.

“Guys, where’s Charlie?” The others froze, all of them looking back at the building.

“I thought she’d come out with us.” Jessica stated, still trying to regain her breathing pattern.

“Maybe she came out another way?” Carlton suggested but it sounded more like a question, John just shook his head, Freddy’s only had one entrance.

“You don’t think she was behind it do you?” Marla sighed at her brother’s question; he was a good kid but had a bad habit of not paying attention and asking senseless questions.

“No, of course she wouldn’t.” Marla scolded him; she highly doubted that Charlie would mess around like that.

“Guys, I don’t mean to worry anyone, but Dave’s not here either.” Lamar’s comment just made them more worried.

“I knew we shouldn’t have trusted him.” Carlton kicked the tarmac, grunting at the contact.

“What are we going to do?” Jessica’s voice was practically a yell.

“We’ll go to my dad, he’ll believe us. Besides, he’s been worrying about Charlie since Henry died.” The others quickly agreed and practically sprinted to the cars.


	12. Chapter 12

Clay sighed as he rubbed his temples, he’d had a long day at work and now he finds out his son and his friends were looking around Freddy’s _and_ one of them had gone missing, the fact that it was Charlie just made everything worse.

“That building should’ve never been sold.” The man grumbled, Freddy’s had been nothing but a curse on that family and he’d be damned if another got hurt because of it.

“What are we going to do?” Clay sighed as he looked at the ~~kids~~ adults in front of him, they’d only known Charlie for a few days and he was amazed at how much they cared for her, he only wished that they could have known her back then – she wasn’t his child and he would never dream of taking that honour from Henry, but he’d had a soft spot for her after Henry’s death.

“Nothing tonight.” He quickly held a hand up to halt the interruptions.

“You’re all tired and I’ve had a long day, we’ll sort a plan in the morning and I’ll need you to tell me about the man you were with. But it’s just too late to do anything worthwhile tonight.” He watched as his wife led them upstairs and slumped on the couch – praying to whatever God existed that Charlie wasn’t hurt.


	13. Chapter 13

When Charlie woke up her head was pounding, she attempted to raise a hand to it when she realised her hands were bound behind her back, she took a few breaths to prevent herself from hyperventilating when she heard a dark chuckle from the other side of the room.

“Finally awake huh?” She froze at that voice and wasn’t surprised when she saw Dave leaning against the wall.

“I knew we shouldn’t’ve trusted you.” She snarled, she wouldn’t allow herself to look weak in front of him; she forced herself not to flinch at his laugh.

“Didn’t do you a lot of good, did it Charlotte?” She froze, how did he know that name?

“You look a lot like them you know; you have her face but his eyes.” He could only be talking about her parents, she willed herself not to cry – she wouldn’t let him have that satisfaction.

“Aaw, going quiet are we?” He laughed again, she wanted to hit him, she wanted to scream at him, but it wouldn’t do her any good – a thought came to her then, he’d seemed hesitant when he first said his name – she didn’t know why, but she felt as if it would answer some of her questions.

“What’s your _real_ name?” She watched as something dark entered his eyes, but it disappeared just as quickly.

“I may as well tell you, not like you’re gonna be leaving anytime soon.” She didn’t want to think too much about that.

“William, William Afton.” Her confusion only got worse, she’d always believed Afton was a good man, she hadn’t seen much of him after Fredbear’s but it was probably best if he and Henry weren’t seen together for a while.

“Why?” She watched as his features settled into one of amusement.

“Why did I change my name? Or, why did I kidnap you?” She huffed in frustration; he seemed to understand her answer.

“There was a lot of suspicion placed on me, granted, Henry got the brunt of it, but I couldn’t risk getting caught – a simple name change sorted that issue.” Charlie didn’t know what he meant by that, if he hadn’t done anything then he wouldn’t have had to worry about being caught.

“As for the second one, well, it just didn’t seem fair on you; ya’ know, being the only one left.” Charlie swallowed, he’d more-or-less admitted that he was going to kill her.

“Before we get on with that, I want to have a bit of fun.” She watched as he pulled a knife from behind his back, her eyes widened and she braced herself for what was about to happen. She didn’t know how long it lasted, but she found herself struggling to keep her eyes open, the pain from her fresh wounds causing her vision to blur. She watched as ~~Dave~~ William’s silhouette opened the door before stopping.

“For what it’s worth, I’m sorry about your brother.” Charlie waited for the door to close before she allowed the tears to come.


	14. Chapter 14

“Dave Miller? Are you sure that’s his name?” Clay paled slightly when the group nodded.

“Then we have a bigger problem than I initially thought.” He ran a hand through his hair, none of this was good.

“Dad, what’s the big deal, who’s Dave Miller?” Carlton was worried now; it was very rare that he saw his father this way.

“Dave Miller, he’s a nobody, turned up in town one day, there was something off about him so we had an officer watch over him for a while. One day, Officer Dunn didn’t report in, he’d disappeared. We had reason to believe that Miller was part of it, but since Dunn’s body was never found, we couldn’t do anything.” He could tell the ~~kids~~ adults were angry, truthfully, so was he.

“We took a murderer to Freddy’s.” John breathed in disbelief.

“That’s not the worst of it.” Clay waited for John to sit down before he continued.

“When you first showed up with Charlie, I did some digging, that’s why I had the newspaper clipping about the incident at Fredbear’s. I had my suspicions about the boy’s disappearance and managed to link it back to William Afton, but there was no evidence I could bring to court and Afton disappeared following the closure of the Diner.” He could see their expressions gradually becoming more worried.

“I have reason to believe that Dave Miller and William Afton are either working together, or the same person.” He watched as they all stood up and held a hand up to stop them.

“Wait, if I’m right, then we must move carefully. Afton has been obsessed with the Mayfields for a long time, if I’m right and he has Charlie, then we must be careful, there’s no telling what damage has been done to her, or what he’ll do if he knows we’re coming.”


	15. Chapter 15

They pulled up outside the diner, each of them holding a flashlight and a taser in their pockets. Clay looked at the old building; it should’ve been knocked down.

“You said the entrance was down there?” He motioned to the alleyway, the others nodded, he could tell they were still shaken.

“Okay, just try to stay calm and follow me.” He waited for them to calm down before walking towards the alleyway, noticing the shelving unit and slightly-opened doors; either they hadn’t sealed it up properly when they ran, or Dave was expecting them. He took a breath and walked in, he lead them to the central room and pulled the three radios from his belt.

“Okay, Jason is going to come with me.” He pointed to one side of the diner while Jason picked up the radio, he could tell Marla wanted to protest but he was glad when she said nothing, he didn’t want to waste any time.

“Marla, Lamar, I want you to stay here, you need to let us know if anything happens that could prevent us from getting out.” He watched as they both nodded, he noticed a panel in the wall.

“If it feels safer, go in there.” He motioned to it; he then turned to John, Jessica and Carlton.

“I’m trusting you three to search the other side of the diner, again, if anything happens let everyone know.” The three of them nodded and he watched as they began to walk off, he headed in the other direction, knowing that Jason was following him.


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Clay and Jason

Clay walked around the room slowly; he’d only just noticed there were only one room on this side of the building and immediately wished he’d gone in the other direction.

“Is Charlie going to be okay?” Clay let out a sigh, he knew Jason was worried, they all were. He himself had only known Charlie for a few days when she was a child, he knew even then that she was a fighter – when Carlton and the others had showed up with her two days ago, _was it really two days?_ He could tell she was still haunted by what happened, but she had tried to get over it, he hoped Miller wouldn’t change that for her.

“I honestly don’t know.” He knew that wasn’t what Jason wanted to hear, but Clay would be lying if he said otherwise, and he may be a lot of things, but a liar wasn’t one of them.

“Why did that man take her?” Clay sighed again, he didn’t know the answer to that either, he doubted anyone could understand the mind of a man like that.

“I don’t know, but what I do know is that the sooner we find Charlie, the sooner we can stop worrying about this.” He was glad that Jason asked no more questions and the two carried on. Clay was about to radio the others and say that he’d found nothing when a metallic screech cut him off, he turned and saw that one of the old animatronics was moving towards him, he’d forgotten their names but he remembered that this one hadn’t been in use even before the diner had closed, he grabbed Jason’s arm and the two of them ran back to the main room, Clay placing a few tables in front of the door in an effort to keep the animatronic out.


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Marla and Lamar

Marla and Lamar sat in silence, both of them straining their ears for the sound of the others returning, they hated sitting around doing nothing, but they understood the need for them to be there. Marla couldn’t stop messing with the flashlight; it was the only thing preventing her hands from shaking.

 “Are you worried about Jason?” Lamar’s voice startled her.

“No.” She had no reason to; she knew Clay would keep him safe.

“It’s Charlie isn’t it?” Lamar asked.

“Yeah, I know we’ve only known her for a few days but she’s been through so much, I just, don’t want her to suffer any more than she already has done.” Lamar could agree with that. The two remained in silence until Clay and Jason came barrelling into the room.

“What’s going on?” Lamar sprung up, not paying attention to Marla and Jason hugging each other.

“The animatronics are moving, I don’t know how, or why, but it isn’t safe here.” Just as he said that a metallic screech came from the stage, the four watched in horror as Bonnie pulled one of his feet from the bolt attaching him to the stage.

“Get in there, quickly.” He pointed to the panel and they quickly dived in, it was a tight fit for the four of them but no-one found it worth commenting. They stayed in there long after the sound of footsteps had faded.

“Call the others, let them know what happened.” Clay murmured to Marla, his arm was pinned to the wall, preventing him from reaching the radio he’d reclaimed from Jason. Marla turned it on but there wasn’t enough of a signal in the room.

“Great, just great.” Lamar sighed.


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> John, Jessica and Carlton

The three of them walked down the hallway, freezing when they noticed there were three doors along the wall.

“We don’t have time to search them all.” Carlton groaned, he had a bad feeling about this place and if Dave was still there, they had a lot to worry about.

“Not if we search them at the same time.” Jessica murmured to herself and Carlton really wished she hadn’t said anything; he didn’t want to walk around this place on his own.

“Good thinking Jess.” John complimented, he quickly scanned the wall seeing who should take each door.

“Jess, you search the toilets.” The girl nodded and walked to the door.

“Carlton, search the office.” He could tell his friend was nervous, but it had to be done.

“I don’t like this.” Carlton murmured but he walked off anyway, shaking his head.

“Guess that leaves me with parts and services.” He sighed.

“Hold on Charlie.”


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Jessica

Jessica opened the door, she knew it would be unlikely for Charlie to be in here, but she looked anyway, she looked under the gap of all the stall doors, feeling dread sink in when Charlie wasn’t in any of them, she was about to leave the room when she heard a thud from behind the door, she quickly dashed into one of the stalls and locked the door. Jessica lowered herself to the floor; there was a chance that she would be able to escape through the gap. She flinched when she heard one the stall doors slam open, accidentally kicking the stall wall behind her, she closed her eyes as the animatronics stalked towards her, she opened her eyes when she heard the footsteps stop. A yellow hand appeared under the door, and Jessica realised that Chica was going to tear it down.

“Not today.” She whispered to herself and quickly slid out the stall. She dashed back to the hallway, noticing one of the others was blocking the door. She didn’t bother checking which one it was, it wouldn’t make any difference, she quickly bolted to the door on the other end of the hallway. She slammed the door behind her and watched as someone pushed one of the filing cabinets down, blocking the door.


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Carlton

Carlton sighed; the office was small enough for his search to be over before he could even do anything. Instead he started looking through the cabinets that lined the wall, something told him it would be a good idea to look for another way out, most of the paper work was useless now, although he did find a small journal tucked away in the back of one of the draws, he quickly realised it was Henry’s and chose to hold onto it until they found Charlie. He was about to continue his search when he heard the door slam open. He froze at the sight of Jessica, breathing slightly faster than normal, he realised she wouldn’t be in here if something hadn’t gone wrong and quickly pushed one of the cabinets down.

“Carlton?” Jessica looked relieved when she saw him.

“What’re you doing? Did you find Charlie?” He shook his head and motioned to the cabinets.

“No, if I had I would’ve been in the main area by now. I’m seeing if I can find a map of the building.” He watched as Jessica moved over to one of the other cabinets, not bothering to ask why.

“Do you think one of the others have found her?” He heard her ask.

“I hope so.”


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> John

John opened the door the parts and services room, mildly surprised that the door wasn’t locked; he walked in the room and felt his heart breaking at what he saw, Charlie was lying there, bruised and definitely bleeding – he hurried over to her and cut the rope around her wrists, making sure he didn’t hurt her. He gently pulled her onto his lap and shook her, trying to wake her up.

“Charlie? Can you hear me?” He heard her groan slightly and he could tell she was in pain.

“John?” Her voice sounded weak, he felt angry that Dave had done this to her in just one night.

“Yeah, it’s me, we’re gonna get you out of here okay?” He waited for her to nod and helped her up, not surprised when she ended up slumping against him. John helped her to the door but found himself freezing when he saw Freddy standing in the doorway. He was desperately trying to figure out what to do when he felt Charlie nudge him; he turned to her and saw her point at the taser.

“Here.” He said, handing it to her, he watched as she climbed onto the box closest the door, noticing she was leaning heavily against the wall. He watched as she rammed the taser into the gap between Freddy’s head and the rest of his suit, sparks flew out and both the bear and Charlie fell to the floor. John quickly helped Charlie up and led her from the room; he turned and saw that Bonnie was pushing against the door to the office.

“Carlton’s in there.” He exclaimed in panic, surprised when Charlie tried to walk forward only to slump against him. John didn’t know where she was getting the strength from but he took that as a good sign. He helped her across the hallway, making sure the animatronic wouldn’t hear them, he watched as Charlie slotted her hand in the back of the suit, pulling herself up enough to ram the taser against the metal; she let out a slight whimper as she fell and John realised that the animatronic was pinning her arm to the floor, he lifted it enough for her to slide her arm out and gently helped her to her feet.

“You’re gonna hurt yourself more if you keep doing that.” He scolded, he felt her shrug and chose to drop the matter, he knocked the door.

“Carlton it’s me, I’ve got Charlie.” He didn’t think he’d ever seen a door open that fast before, he watched as Jessica wrapped Charlie in a hug and moved her over to the table.

“You look like shit.” Carlton stated jokingly in her direction. John had to hold back a laugh when she flipped him off.


	22. Chapter 22

John sighed when the third attempt to call the others failed, he handed the radio back to Carlton who was in a similar state of panic.

“What do we do now?” Jessica asked quietly, she was sat on the table with Charlie asleep on her shoulder, it was probably a bad idea for her to be asleep but none of them had the heart to wake her.

“We go back to the others; Charlie already took care of two of the animatronics so we should be fine.” He saw the confusion on their faces and explained how she’d dealt with them.

“That’s actually kind of badass.” Carlton laughed; Jessica nudged his side and motioned to Charlie, quickly shutting him up.

“Never say that again.” John smiled; he opened the door, sighing in relief when he saw that Bonnie was still down. He turned to the others, noticing that Carlton was carrying Charlie while Jessica was carrying a strange book; he chose not to question it, instead leading them to the main room. He noticed the others look up when they appeared all of them relieved that Charlie was with them.

“How is she?” Marla asked when they got closer.

“Bruised and bleeding but she’ll be fine.” He reassured her but froze when maniac laughter was heard behind them, they all turned to face the voice and saw a yellow rabbit stood there.

“That’s one of the animatronics Charlie told us about, the one who took her brother.” John growled; the others stood between the animatronic and Charlie.

“Ah Sammy, the very first to join my family.” This guy was crazy; the group were so distracted that they didn’t notice Charlie wake up.

“It seems a shame doesn’t it, all the Mayfields are gone, all but one.” The group didn’t like the sound of that, they’d been told about Charlie’s family but the way the man in front of them spoke about it was unnerving.

“Sammy was such a good child you know, he cried, but he never made a sound.” Carlton felt something damp against his neck, he realised Charlie was crying and gently helped her stand up, not surprised when John immediately pulled her against his side.

“Karen, well, I never liked her much, I was glad when she left – she never understood Henry anyway. Did you know she was killed by a bus a few weeks after leaving him?” John could tell Charlie was trying to hold back sobs, she hadn’t known what had happened to her mother, and to be told in that way.

“It was a shame what happened to Henry, but it was either me or him, and he was depressed anyway – he’s much happier now.” Charlie couldn’t stop the sobs this time and Afton’s eyes immediately locked on her, he took one step closer, the group all placing a hand over their tasers.

“And, of course, we shouldn’t forget about Charlotte should we. Your father loved you more than anything; he built this place with you in mind.” The others were focussing so much on his words that they didn’t notice he had gotten closer until his hand closed around Charlie’s neck and had lifted her up.

“Charlie!” John yelled, halting when he saw Afton pull a knife – already dripping with blood – from behind his back.

“I wonder if reuniting him with you would make him happier.” The group watched, helplessly, as the man plunged the knife into her chest, the scream she let out tore at their hearts. Afton went to stab her again, but they were surprised when she halted his arm, she wasn’t strong enough, that much they could tell, they saw his hand tighten round her neck.

“You killed my brother.” They heard her rasp out, it was clear that Dave hadn’t expected that either.

“You killed my dad.” They watched as blood slowly trickled out of her mouth.

“But you won’t kill me.” They hadn’t noticed her other hand reaching for the head of his suit, they heard a click and what sounded like metal parts starting to snap into place, they heard the man yell and watched as he threw Charlie, she landed, unmoving at their feet, the group didn’t wait to see Dave die, they hurried out the building, Charlie cradled in Clay’s arms.


	23. Chapter 23

Charlie woke up to the sound of beeping, she attempted to lift her head, but her neck was too sore. She felt a hand smooth through her hair and felt herself relaxing against it.

“She’s awake.” A voice murmured next to her, she looked in its direction and found herself smiling when she saw John’s face.

“Don’t try to speak, you throat hasn’t healed yet.” She breathed out in slight-frustration, but blushed when she heard him laugh and place a kiss on her forehead.

“You were really brave, you know that?” He smiled softly, at that moment the others walked into the room; she couldn’t hold back her smile when they started speaking excitedly over each other. They all looked up when a knock was heard at the door. Charlie’s breathing faltered when she saw her aunt Jen walk in.

“Charlie.” She cried, tears streaming from her face, Charlie felt the woman’s arms wrap around her, she lifted her own up to return the hug, her muscles aching.

“I came as soon as I was called.” Charlie felt Jen’s thumb wipe away a tear she didn’t know was falling.

“I’m so sorry, I should’ve done better.” She knew what Jen was talking about, she didn’t hold anything against the woman, grief did that to people. Charlie smiled at her, relieved when the woman smiled back.

“When you get out of here I’ll do better, I promise.” Charlie hesitantly opened her arms for a hug and Jen was quick to respond, they stayed like that for a few moments before Jen turned to the others.

“Thank you, thank you so much for helping my niece.”

“It was no problem, she’s our friend.” John smiled, a blush faintly decorating his cheeks.

“Or more-than-friends for some of us.” Jessica laughed when she noticed his blush, causing one to form on Charlie’s face too.

“Oh, while we were looking for you, I found this.” Jessica stated, handing the journal to Charlie.

“Is this dad’s?” She asked, tears already forming in her eyes, Jessica simply nodded.

“Hey, we’re going to spend a few more weeks in Hurricane, we’d be happy if you came with us.” John said, rubbing the back of his neck, Charlie smiled at him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I might do a part 2.


End file.
